Just when you thought Coco Pops couldn’t get any better, Kellogg’s release a super duper healthy wholegrain version of your kids favourite cereal, and all your prayers are immediately answered. Right?
Well, my apprehensions go up ten fold when I notice a typically unhealthy, but very popular, food item is suddenly ‘healthified’ over night. If it was going to be so much better for you than the original, the product would have gone through a significant rebrand, as the demographic would naturally be flipped on its head.
Granola, as you will know already, really isn’t good for you at all. Steeped in sugar, stuffed with additives, the list goes on… no, granola is very very naughty. So just hearing about a Coco Pops Granola physically gives me hives. Let’s dissect the evidence and you can feel super uneasy with me…
The look
So, the packaging pretty much looks exactly the same, but instead comes in a ‘resealable pouch’ that you see everywhere now. Maybe this is to dispel the sense that you’re eating cereal, with this being more of a snack than a meal. I don’t know; personally I think it’s a lame way to separate the ‘healthy’ new Coco Pops from the old ones. I’m not convinced.
The sell
The packet says its a “chocolate flavour granola with chocolate flavour wheat shapes” which all sounds good in theory, until you start to unpack the words on an individual level:
“Chocolate” – nothing was EVER healthy and chocolate (unless over 80% dark chocolate, but Kellogg’s would never go that high brow)
“Flavour” – so there are flavourings in this. Other additives too probably.
“Shapes” – nothing that is ‘natural’ is ever in a particular shape. Do you know how these big companies make these fantastic shapes? SUGAR. doh!
The ingredients
So this is the bit that REALLY matters. The ingredients:
Oats (30%), Wheat Flour (15%), Sunflower Oil, Sugar, Rice Flour (8%), Puffed Rice (6%), Rice Syrup, Maize Flour (4.5%), Fat Reduced Cocoa Powder, Cocoa Powder, Glucose Syrup, Flavourings, Barley Malt Flavouring, Salt, Antioxidant (Tocopherol Rich Extract), Cinnamon, Vitamins & Minerals: Niacin, Iron, Vitamin B6, Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin), Vitamin B1 (Thiamin), Folic Acid, Vitamin D, Vitamin B12
For saying that the packaging really pushes the ‘wheat’ and ‘fibre’ content, it turns out there is only a measly 15% of wheat flour. You might get a tiny bit of fibre from the puffed rice, but only just enough to get the 3% total fibre (per 100g) that you need to be able to profess “A good source of fibre” on packaging (I know, 3% out of 100g really is NOT high fibre at all, but when in Rome…)
Oil, sugar, and ye olde favourite, glucose syrup make up most of this cereal/snack thing and lots of random B vitamins added in at the end allow Kelloggs to state how healthy and VITAMIN-RICH (WOOOOO VITAMINS) they are. This isn’t the way to do it – it’s like waiting until 3am to find your perfect match in a dingy bar. Avoid at all costs. Unless you really, really hate yourself.
My Wellbeing Journal 